The Transfer Tavern

Landing this £6.3m-rated star this summer would be Newcastle’s best deal in years

Newcastle United supporters have been making a lot of noise in the Transfer Tavern this week after seeing their team ease past fellow Premier League strugglers Southampton 3-0 on Saturday to move up to 13th place in the division.

Rafa Benitez’s men went into their clash with the Saints off the back of a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Liverpool in their preceding league outing, a result which saw them slip a place to 16th in the table and just a few points clear of the bottom three. However, the Magpies have put some distance between themselves and the relegation zone as a brace from Kenedy as well as a Matt Ritchie strike secured a routine success over Southampton at St James’ Park, in turn moving Benitez’s men up to 13th place in the Premier League table.

Consequently, there have been many delighted Newcastle fans in the Tavern this week, several of whom are hoping their side build upon that momentum when they host Huddersfield Town in their next encounter on March 31.

In the meantime though, there has been much for our resident Magpies supporters to discuss, not least recent reports that the club will prioritise a permanent move for Chelsea winger Kenedy in the summer.

And given how influential he has already been for the North East giants this term, landing the £6.3 million-rated star (as per Transfermarkt) during the close season would be the best deal Newcastle have done in years.

Ultimately, the Magpies were in dire need of reinforcements during the January transfer window after an underwhelming first half of the campaign, and the 22-year-old has certainly added much-needed quality to the Newcastle attack.

The Brazil youth international has scored two goals and laid on one assist in six appearances for Benitez’s side since his loan move from champions Chelsea during the winter, with both goals coming in a man-of-the-match display against Mauricio Pellegrino’s Saints on Saturday.

And while he hasn’t always translated his efforts into direct contributions, there’s little doubt that the tricky winger has brought something extra to the Magpies frontline, with his desire to take defenders on and eye for a pass culminating to inspire a much more threatening Newcastle attacking unit – Benitez’s side have only failed to score once in Kenedy’s six appearances.

Clearly, the North East giants are a much better team with the 22-year-old in it, and with the man himself admitting not long after his arrival on Tyneside that he’d be open to a permanent deal, the Magpies hierarchy simply must act swiftly to lure him to St James’ Park in the summer.

If Newcastle do indeed stay in the Premier League, they will need quality players like Kenedy to push on up the division next season – he has proven in just six first team appearances that he would significantly benefit the team in the long run as well.

As such, landing the 22-year-old on a permanent deal this summer would be the best deal the Magpies have done in many a year.